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Burglars steal two dogs from Atlanta gay couple

By Project Q Atlanta | Jul 31, 2012 | 3:36 PM

When does a burglary get personal? When you steal two dogs from an Atlanta gay couple that loves them like they are their own children.

That happened to Jamie Arnold and Nicholas Bellayuto, a couple for 10 years who owns five dogs. On Monday two of the pups – 4-year-old Bentley, a rescue, and 11-year-old Jazzy, who once belonged to longtime drag performer Alexandria Martin, who moved from Atlanta nearly two years ago – were stolen during a burglary of their Ridge Avenue home in northwest Atlanta on Monday. The theft also included other items from the home, including clothes.

Fortunately, the thieves left behind three other dogs. But Bellayuto, who works part-time at Jungle, tells Project Q Atlanta that the couple is “devastated” by the missing dogs.

Arnold tells CBS Atlanta that he’s offering a $1,000 reward for the safe return of Bentley and Jazzy.

UPDATE: Atlanta police say that the suspects entered the house through a downstairs window and rifled through drawers and opened a safe. They stole two televisions, a digital camera, computer equipment, a chair and the two dogs.

UPDATE II: If you have information about the crime, you can email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), anonymously contact Crime Stoppers or reach out to Atlanta police.